I think it's about balance again and sweetness is a part of that. I particularly enjoy the secondary sweetness at the back of the throat that lingers and lubricates. Hui Gan?

Anyway, looks like I'll be voting for "balance" for a few more days as this series unfolds.

Still a bit under the weather, so I'm saving my "good" tea for the day I can experience it fully again. So I'm having a mug of irish breakfast with some additional "sweetness" piled on to balance the bitter -- while I am lustily eyeing some Select Grade TKY from Mandarin Tea Room.

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"...maybe not today, maybe not tomorrow, but soon; POW right in (my) kisser."

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Last edited by tortoise on Apr 5th, '11, 11:32, edited 1 time in total.

Considering I cannot stand a bitter edge to my tea--sweet is definitely a plus. But not sickly-sweet, a la added sugar/honey/sweetener. There are a couple of oolongs--Xiu Xian's Sweet Jade or Floating Leaves' Lishan--that I definitely love when I want a sweet, rich tea ....

This was a tough question to answer - as my perception of sweet could be different from others, as is my perception of bitter. I figure that I need a lot of sweet to balance out the bitter, especially in Japanese tea.

Started the day with the Tsuen Sencha Otusuusan that arrived yesterday from O-Cha. I lowered the temperature from the recommended 176 degrees down to 170, upped the time a few seconds, and enjoyed a delicious cup of tea. Well, 3 cups - maybe because of the stems this tea wears out after 3 steeps.